The invention relates to fluid connectors, and, in particular, to a multi-line hydraulic connector adapted for use in a tool coupler used with excavation, demolition and construction equipment.
Some types of construction equipment, such as backhoes or excavators, include a movable dipper stick (also referred to as an arm) to which a variety of tools, such as buckets, grapples, hammers and the like, can be attached. A hydraulic bucket cylinder coupled to the attached tool at a link pivot rotates the tool about a dipper pivot at the free end of the dipper stick. The bucket cylinder and a linkage to the link pivot are located on a distal (forward) side of the dipper stick relative to the cab where the operator sits. To simplify the process of changing tools, a tool coupler can be permanently attached to the dipper pivot and the link pivot. A selected tool can then be removably attached to the coupler with a locking mechanism. The locking mechanism, in some cases, includes a locking pin on the tool coupler that engages a mating receptacle in the tool.
There is a trend in the industry to use an actuated quick-disconnect tool coupler for automatically connecting and disconnecting a tool. Co-owned U.S. Pat. No. 5,727,342, to Horton, describes a quick-disconnect tool coupler that includes a latch pin biased by a spring to a forward locking position. The latch pin is retracted by extending a hydraulic latch pin cylinder located in the coupler. With this type of tool coupler, the equipment operator can switch tools without leaving the cab of the equipment.
Some tools include a hydraulically actuated mechanism. For example, some grapple attachments include a hydraulic cylinder for opening and closing the grapple jaws. The tool hydraulics typically require two hydraulic connections between the tool hydraulics and hydraulic lines extending to the end of the dipper stick. In presently available systems, these connections must be made manually. This reduces the efficiencies of the hydraulically actuated quick-disconnect tool coupler systems, because the equipment operator must leave the cab to make the connections or a second worker must be available to do so.